A current through a circuit conductor (e.g., a wire) may be determined (e.g., sensed, acquired, and/or measured) based on, for example, a magnetic field generated by the circuit conductor as the current passes through the circuit conductor. Determining current based on a magnetic field may allow the current to be measured without physically contacting the circuit conductor, for example.
Some previous approaches for determining current based on a magnetic field may use a number of Hall sensors placed in a gap of a magnetic core to concentrate the magnetic flux produced by the current. Hall sensors can be single chip sensors which may be relatively inexpensive, but may lack sensitivity and/or accuracy in operation.
Other previous approaches for determining current based on a magnetic field may use a number of anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) sensors placed in a gap of a magnetic core to concentrate the magnetic flux produced by the current. AMR sensors may be accurate, but may have a low magnetoresistance ratio and/or a narrow monotone linear sensing range. Such shortcomings may limit the sensitivity and/or sensing range of current sensors. Additionally, current sensors using AMR may have complicated structures and/or multiple components. As a result, current sensors using AMR may use a large amount of space (e.g., volume), a large amount of power, and/or may be costly to operate.